herself much pleased to meet a _cavalière Inglesi_, as she had been
honored with great marks of favor in England. Signor Hasse soon entered
the room. He is tall and rather large in size, but it is easy to imagine
that in his younger days he must have been a robust and fine figure;
great gentleness and goodness appear in his countenance and manners."

Going to see them a second time, the Doctor was received by the whole
family with much cordiality. He says Faustina was very intelligent,
animated, and curious concerning what was going on in the world. She had
a wonderful store of musical reminiscences, and showed remains of the
splendid beauty for which her youth was celebrated. But her voice was
all gone. Dr. Burney asked her to sing. "Ah! Non posso; ho perduto
tutte le mie facoltà." ("Alas! I am no longer able; I have lost all
my faculty.") "I was extremely fascinated," said the Doctor, "with the
conversation of Signor Hasse. He was easy, communicative, and rational,
equally free from pedantry, pride, and prejudice. He spoke ill of
no one, but on the contrary did justice to the talents of several
composers, among them Porpora, who, though he was his first master, was
afterward his greatest rival." Though his fingers were gouty, he played
on the piano for his visitor, and his beautiful daughters sang. One was
a "sweet soprano," the other a "rich and powerful contralto, fit for
any church or theatre in Europe "; both girls "having good shakes," and
"such an expression, taste, and steadiness as it is natural to expect in
the daughters and scholars of Signor Hasse and Signora Faustina."

There are two pictures of Faustina Bordoni in existence. One is in
Hawkins's "History," showing her in youth. Brilliant large black
eyes, splendid hair, regular features, and a fascinating sweetness of
expression, attest how lovely she must have been in the heyday of
her charms. The other represents her as an elderly person, handsomely